The invention is directed to a distributed system of intelligent automata: it is in part a light-directed, coupled system to facilitate the retrieval of stock keeping units (SKUs) stored in uniquely identified locations and subsequent placement of these same items into uniquely identified receptacles. More specifically it comprises a system whereby unique location addresses are translated to specific light addresses in a storage facility. Even more specifically, it is a system whereby a single light or lighted character display which is an integral part of an intelligent light assembly is activated at the exact storage location of a specific SKU in response to communication by wired means from a portable computer through a bi-directional, dual transmitter/receiver element then by wireless means to a pick-controller unit that is wired to a plurality of intelligent light assemblies. Each intelligent light assembly represents a unique light address and is positioned at a corresponding unique physical location or address in the storage facility. Still more specifically, it is a system wherein intelligent light assemblies associated with specific storage receptacles are also activated by instructions received from the portable computer through a bi-directional, dual transmitter/receiver element to a put-controller unit thereby indicating the locations (receptacles) and quantity of retrieved items to be placed in the designated receptacles, thereby facilitating batch picking of multiple orders. And yet more specifically, it is a system wherein the portable computer, bi-directional, dual transmitter/receiver element, put-controller unit, and the storage receptacles with associated intelligent light assemblies are all positioned on a mobile retrieval element capable of being propelled throughout the storage facility. A pick-controller unit and intelligent light assemblies and related hardware are stationary units, with each individual light assembly mounted and wired on an individual location in a storage bay.
The invention anticipates a plurality of mobile retrieval units and of storage bays.
Filling orders from stored inventory requires at least three steps: locating the precise item in the storage facility, retrieving (or picking) the desired quantity of that item, and storing (or putting) the retrieved items in a designated container or receptacle. The basic steps may apply to a variety of situations in which items must be identified, selected, and distributed or placed in a second location. Frequently this process is generally described in terms of order fulfillment in a warehouse.
Storage in a facility may be viewed as a nested or hierarchical arrangement with bays arranged along aisles and shelves or storage containers located in or on a bay. Thus, the location of a specific item, commonly referred to as a Stock Keeping Unit or SKU, would be an xe2x80x9caddressxe2x80x9d in the storage facility comprising the aisle, the bay along that aisle, and a shelf, bin or container located in the bay. So long as a protocol exists to associate only one SKU with each unique combination of aisle, bay, and shelf, identification of a particular SKU is unnecessary to identify or characterize the item to be picked, since the address of the item is sufficient.
In an exclusively manual system, an employee receives an order for a specific item or group of items. Either by memory, which is subject to error, or by reference to a facility map or plan, the employee must identify the location of the item, go to that location, pick the required quantity of items for the order, and either return to a central shipping point or place them in an appropriate receptacle. This process is repeated until a given order is filled. Multiple opportunities for errors exist, from misreading the storage facility location label, to selecting from an incorrect, but adjacent shelf or other storage receptacle, to picking the wrong quantity of the correct item, or to putting the correct items in an incorrect receptacle for subsequent shipping or order processing. In addition, many separate orders may require the same item, but in an exclusively manual system, batch order picking is most commonly the exception, rather than the rule, resulting in significant inefficiencies associated with repeated trips to pick each order individually.
Technology has advanced beyond the exclusively manual system of pick and put. The evolution of computer technology and related electronic systems has played a significant part in this advancement. U.S. Pat. No. 3,739,339 issued to Hillhouse on Jun. 12, 1973 describes a system that is characteristic of the status of current pick and put technology for many warehouse-like situations.
In the ""339 patent, a computer punch-card system is used in which the row by column punch matrix of the card represents the storage location of items, and quantities of the item to be picked may also be encoded. At least one card reader is wired to a computer. When a card is inserted into a card reader positioned on a bay or similar group of discrete storage units, the configuration of punches activates a light system such that the precise location of the item is indicated by an illuminated element, and the quantity to be selected is displayed in a centrally located, lighted display. The system also provides for a put-to-light process with a separate light system wired to individual containers or receptacles. Major deficiencies of this system include the requirement of hard wire communications of the light systems, communications through the card reader to a central computer, and the fact that overall efficiency and performance of the system degrades as the number of lights increases. The system has virtually no fault tolerance: failure of any central component causes the entire system to fail.
Radio communications have been applied to inventory related, selection applications. U.S. Pat. No. 5,877,698 issued to Kusiner, et al. on Mar. 2, 1999 describes a system of radio transmitters positioned throughout a supermarket with mobile receivers positioned on shopping carts commonly used by customers. When a receiver is within a limited range of any specific transmitter, an exclusive link is established whereby the transmitter sends to the receiver a specific advertising message calling attention to a xe2x80x9cbargainxe2x80x9d product at a specific nearby location. The link is broken as the receiver moves out of range of the local transmitter, but may establish links with other transmitters throughout the facility.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,124,800 issued to Beard and Bunte on Sep. 26, 2000 discloses and claims a route delivery system utilizing both local area network and wide area network radio frequencies to communicate inventory data between an end delivery point (such as a vending machine) and a stocked delivery vehicle, and between the vehicle and a base office to minimize the number of actual visits a service person must make to deliver the necessary inventory items to a specific end point as well as to simplify routing of the delivery vehicle.
U.S. patent No. 5,505,473 issued to Radcliffe on Apr. 9, 1996 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,877,962, a divisionally related patent issued to Radcliffe on Mar. 2, 1999 describe and claim respectively a computer-based system to facilitate proper placement of articles picked by an attendant from inventory storage shelves and deposited in delivery containers mounted on a cart and a method for the practical utilization of the system. In addition, the system and related method include an optional beacon light system to indicate the location of inventory items to be picked or recovered.
The system of the ""473 patent and related method of the ""962 patent depend on a single intelligent element or computer that must maintain constant two-way radio communication between a receiver/central control unit mounted on a cart and between the optional beacon system located on storage shelves. A scanner mounted on the cart is used to read codes on either the location or item to be picked to validate the designated pick.
Current technology includes warehouse management systems wherein given a request for any specific item, the system responds by identifying the specific storage location in the facility.
There remains opportunity and need for the development of intelligent automata in which dependency on a single intelligent unit (computer) is minimized and in which novel, intelligent technologies and systems are combined to yield a more reliable and efficient, distributed, generalized, light-directed picking/putting system as will be fully described in the following specification, including figures and the appended claims.
Accordingly, a goal of this invention is a light directed picking/putting system utilizing distributed intelligence to facilitate processing the picking of customer orders such that the quantity of an item and its specific storage location in a warehouse are visually displayed to an attendant who retrieves (picks) the specific quantity of the indicated items and places (puts) them into one or more designated receptacles for further delivery processing.
A further goal of this invention is a system wherein a portable computer translates pick order information to light addresses and through a series of circuits activates lighted character displays indicating the quantity of items and location from which the items are to be retrieved.
A still further goal of this invention is an intelligent light assembly capable of receiving light address and pick order directions and illuminating a character display indicating the storage location and quantity of items to be retrieved therefrom.
An additional goal of the invention is to utilize independent portable computers positioned on mobile elements to each communicate via wireless means with an intelligent pick-controller unit positioned on storage bays to activate visual signals indicating the location of an item on a shelf in the bay.
A further goal of the invention is a system of distributed intelligence that reduces the need for repeated visits to the same storage bay to pick multiple SKUs by directing the attendant to pick specific quantities of these SKUs from locations designated with lighted character displays and by directing the attendant to put these items into a single receptacle identified by a lighted character display.
Still another goal of the invention is a system of distributed intelligence that reduces the need for repeated visits to the same storage location for an item required in multiple, independent orders by directing the attendant to pick an aggregate order quantity from a single storage location, identified by the aggregate order quantity shown in a lighted character display, and to put designated quantities of this SKU into multiple receptacles, each identified by the designated quantity shown in a lighted character display, thereby facilitating batch putting of multiple, independent orders.
And still a further goal of the invention is management through an interactive system associated with the light-directed pick/put system that allows the attendant to indicate that the pick is successfully completed or not.
Yet an additional goal is a system that indicates unidentified locations to be assigned a light address that is unique only to that specific location and independent of any central computer system.
Another goal is to provide a system with keyboard or speech-recognized completion confirmation that tolerates faults in any put- or pick-controller unit or intelligent light assembly by directing an attendant through spoken or visual means, independent of such controller units and intelligent light assemblies, to pick and put items according to an order.
These and other goals are achieved by a communication system having a bi-directional, dual transmitter/receiver element in wired communication with a portable computer and in wired or wireless communication with put- and pick-controller units in which the portable computer translates order location data into light addresses that are communicated by wireless means to a pick-controller unit positioned on a storage bay and in electrical communication with a plurality of intelligent light assemblies each of which intelligent light assemblies is positioned at a unique location such that in response to the communicated, translated, order location data, a specific intelligent light assembly is activated illuminating a character display thereby indicating the location and quantity of the SKU to be retrieved from that location, and further, the portable computer, the bi-directional, dual transmitter/receiver element, and put-controller unit are positioned on a mobile element that has a plurality of receptacles positioned on it, each receptacle having a unique, intelligent light assembly positioned near it and wired to the put-controller unit such that in response to translated location data communicated from the portable computer through the bi-directional, dual transmitter/receiver element and then through the put-controller unit a character display is activated indicating the quantities of any retrieved SKU to be put into each of one or more indicated receptacles.
Moreover, these and other goals are achieved by a method that includes positioning, on a mobile element, a portable computer that has been programmed to translate pick order locations to specific pick-location light addresses and to specific put-location light addresses associated with specific receptacles that are positioned on the same mobile element on which the portable computer is positioned, and entering pick orders into the portable computer after which the mobile unit attendant is instructed to traverse a predetermined path throughout the storage facility, and in response to a communication system activated by the attendant, intelligent light assemblies at specified storage locations illuminate to indicate the location and quantity of an item to be picked from that location, and similar intelligent light assemblies on the mobile unit indicate the quantity of each picked item to be put into designated receptacles located on the mobile element; the attendant repeats the intelligent light assembly directed pick and put process until one or more orders is filled, returns the mobile unit to a drop-off station for unloading and is then ready to repeat the entire process when additional orders are entered into the portable computer.
These and other goals of the invention are still further achieved by a distributed intelligence communication system with a pick-controller unit capable of being engaged in two-way communication by means of a bi-directional, dual transmitter/receiver element with a computer and being engaged in two-way communication with a plurality of first intelligent light assemblies, and also having a put-controller unit in two-way communication by means of a bi-directional, dual transmitter/receiver element with a computer and being engaged in two-way communication with a plurality of second intelligent light assemblies, and still further having means that enable a first intelligent light assembly to respond to coded messages transmitted through the pick-controller unit by the computer thereby displaying unique instructions, and still further having means that enable a second intelligent light assembly to respond to coded messages transmitted through the put-controller unit by the computer thereby displaying unique instructions, and finally having means that enable activation of a second intelligent light assembly in coordination with activation of a first intelligent light assembly.